UAE – Skills for Employability Entrepreneurial Project - National Institute for Vocational Education (NIVE)- SfE, BC

In 2012, Edinburgh College was awarded funding by the British Council Skills for Employability (SfE) programme to deliver a two-year entrepreneurial project, working with partners in the UK and UAE. The SfE programme supported partnerships that focus on developing education and training programmes to meet the needs of local and global industry. The aims and objectives of the project addressed several aspects of the Dubai Strategic Plan 2015, including enhancing awareness of vocational education in Dubai and the ‘Emiratisation’ programme. 

The project saw Edinburgh College partner with the National Institute for Vocational Education (NIVE) in Dubai, UAE. Project staff from Edinburgh College and NIVE worked in partnership, together with awarding bodies, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and EdExcel, to integrate entrepreneurial skills into the curricula of both institutions through the redesign and delivery of Higher National (HN) and BTEC Marketing and Business units, to support and encourage would-be entrepreneurs.  

The project used innovative methods to encourage Scottish and Emirati students to motivate and support one another as they developed their ideas. Edinburgh College’s virtual learning environment, Desire 2 Learn (D2L), provided an excellent platform for communication and exchange. This project was twice nominated for the Skills Partnership Award at British Council dissemination events in Egypt and Kuwait, in recognition of the achievements of this outstanding skills development partnership.